How to Restore a Monero Wallet From Seed (Recovery Words)

If you lose your phone, clear your browser, or simply want to move to a different wallet, your Monero is not gone. As long as you have your seed, you can bring your wallet back on any device. The seed (also called the recovery words or mnemonic, 25 words in all) is what restores a wallet. This guide walks you through a restore in plain language, explains the one setting that decides how fast it goes, and shows what to do when something looks wrong.

When you need to restore

People restore a wallet for a few common reasons:

• You lost, broke, or replaced your phone or computer.
• You cleared your browser data and the wallet disappeared.
• You forgot your wallet password. The money is fine, and restoring with your words is the fix.
• You want to move to a different Monero wallet.
• You want to test that your backup works. This is a smart habit, covered in the backup guide.

What you need

You need your 25 recovery words, written in the right order. That is it. You do not need your old device, your old password, or any account. The password only protected the copy on your old device, so you will set a new one during the restore. If your words came from MyMonero, see how to restore a MyMonero seed. Coming from Exodus? Exodus ended Monero support in August 2025, and if you have its 12 words you can enter them as they are: MonkStash turns them into the standard 25-word seed for the same wallet. Our guide to getting your Monero back from Exodus covers the whole move.

Restore step by step

1. Open the wallet and choose Restore from recovery words.
2. Type your 25 words in order. Check the spelling as you go, and watch for any word the wallet does not recognize.
3. If you know roughly when you first created the wallet, enter that date. It is optional, but it makes the next step much faster.
4. Set a new password to lock the wallet on this device.
5. Wait while the wallet checks the network. Your balance and history appear as it finishes.
6. Compare your main address with the one you saved. If the first and last characters match, the restore is right.

Why the restore date matters

Monero hides payment details, so a wallet cannot simply look up a balance. It has to scan the network block by block to find the payments that belong to you. A block is a batch of transactions, and a new one arrives about every 2 minutes. Telling the wallet roughly when yours started lets it skip everything before that and go straight to the part that matters.Without a date, it starts from the very beginning, which can take a long time.

Some wallets ask for a block number, called the restore height, instead of a date. Both mean the same thing: where to start looking. If you only have a date, a wallet that accepts dates will convert it for you.

What to expect while it syncs

A restore is not instant. The wallet is doing real work, and the time depends on how far back it needs to look and how fast the connection is. A recent wallet may take a minute or two. An old wallet restored from the very beginning can take much longer.

• Your balance may show zero or a partial amount until the scan reaches the end. This is normal.
• Keep the tab open and the device awake. Closing it pauses progress.
• The wallet talks to a Monero node to read the network. See what a Monero node is if that is new to you.

If the progress seems stuck, try fixing a wallet that will not sync.

If some money looks missing

If your balance is lower than expected after restoring, do not panic. The usual cause is a restore date set too late, so the wallet has not scanned far enough back to find older payments. Restore again with an earlier date, or let it scan from the beginning. Give it time to finish before deciding anything is wrong.

Other things to check, in order:

1. Is the sync complete? A partly synced wallet shows a partial balance.
2. Did recent payments settle? New Monero needs about 10 confirmations (roughly 20 minutes) before it is spendable.
3. Is the address the same as before? If not, a word may be wrong, which brings us to the next section.

Word count and typo problems

Standard Monero wallets use 25 words, and the last one is a checksum that catches most typos. If the wallet says the words are invalid, check these common causes:

A wrong word that still passes the checksum is rare, but it can happen. If a restore works but shows an unfamiliar address, recheck every word before assuming the wallet is broken.

Watch-only restore

If you only want to keep an eye on an address, you can add a watch-only wallet instead, using the address and its private view key. It shows incoming payments but cannot spend, which is handy for checking funds on a device you do not fully trust.

Keep in mind that a view key is still private information: anyone who has it can see your incoming payments. When you want to spend again, restore the full wallet from your recovery words.

After you restore

Once your balance shows up, take a few short steps to get safe again.

• Check your backup is still safe and has not been seen by anyone. If your old device was stolen, consider moving your funds to a brand new wallet.
• Make sure the new password is strong and unique.
• Remove the wallet from any device you no longer control.

If your old device was stolen and was unlocked, the thief could have used it. Moving funds to a new wallet with fresh words is the safest answer, and it costs only a small network fee.

What to do next

Your wallet is back. If you restored because of a lost device, read how to back up a Monero wallet to make sure the next loss is a non-event. If you are new to all this, start with creating a wallet and what Monero is, or open your wallet to get going.